New York Times editor: After Orlando shooting, don't editorialize on social media

Philip Corbett, the associate managing editor for standards at The New York Times, reminded the newsroom on Monday that, in the wake of the Orlando shooting, they shouldn't use their social media accounts to editorialize, promote their political views or take sides on controversial issues.

Here's the memo, sent to the newsroom an hour ago:

Colleagues:

In the middle of a contentious presidential campaign, and after the terrible events in Orlando, this may be a good time for a reminder about posting on social media.

On their personal social-media accounts, Times newsroom staffers should avoid editorializing, promoting their political views or taking sides on hot-button issues. Even if you personally are not involved in coverage of a particular topic, our colleagues are working hard to maintain The Times's credibility and evenhandedness, and we should not do anything to make their jobs tougher.

People following Times newsroom staffers online expect them to be well-informed and thoughtful. But we should leave the opinions to our colleagues on the Opinion side.

Let me know if you have any questions, and thanks.

Phil

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Benjamin Mullin is the managing editor of Poynter.org. He previously reported for Poynter as a staff writer, Google Journalism Fellow and Naughton Fellow, covering journalism innovation, business practices and ethics.